One of the things that, as lead writer, I had to bang into the head of senior leadership sometimes was that writers were not interchangeable even within a project. One writer knew a certain companion inside and out. When we lost that writer, a new writer coming in took twice as long to do the work.

Hi bsky! I'm looking for game writing/narrative design work, freelance or full time! I have 6+ years of experience working with both AAA and indie studios, shipping over a dozen projects like Borderlands 4 and Endoparasitic and more! You can find my website and portfolio here: www.nessacannon.com

GAMEDEVS IN THE US AND CANADA What are you doing on Sundays? Want to come to free, virtual trainings on the basics of labor unions and organizing offered by @codecwa.bsky.social? SIGN UP HERE 👇 code-cwa.org/upcoming-tra...

The myth of the auteur. Kojima for instance has a massive team behind him - he is important but not solely responsible for his games and I wish he'd be more generous with his credit. Same goes for every other AAA figurehead. That being said, a poor creative lead absolutely destroys projects.

game devs: what are the myths that a lot of players of games think are true about making games that are completely untrue? If you could snap your fingers and they suddenly all knew the truth about it what would it be?

Incredible blog post by @liasae.bsky.social here, on code and genAI and having some and demanding some dignity and pride in what we do as programmers really

There's so much money floating around DFW, and so many talented top-of-the-industry game devs also floating around here right now, plus the Texas Film Fund tax incentives it would just take 2-3 investors to put in a TINY amount of money into a Dallas Game Fund to incubate the next id Software

GG to GDQ

I would prefer no one refer to the process of gamedev as magic ever again.

Statement from VGHF director Frank Cifaldi on the discontinuation of physical PlayStation media, and the closure of the PS3 and PSP digital storefronts.

this is also (IMO) why a lot of the covid-era fresh startups fell by the wayside- you can have a studio pedigree 20 pages deep but if there's no trust, then it's hard to really make anything. and trust takes time and continuous shared wins (and shared failures) to build; there isn't a shortcut.

I'm looking to speak to folks who have worked as contractors via agencies or other third-parties, who have lost work recently as a part of restructurings/larger layoffs at companies like Xbox, Epic, Ubi, etc. Want to know about the larger, uncounted cost of these things. Email and Signal are in bio.

I'm not a believer in "always be kind" because I think rewarding unkind people with kindness reinforces a tolerance for unwarranted unkindness. That said, I *do* believe in "be kind until they give you a reason not to." The world is better when kindness is a default and unkindness is a consequence.

And to be clear: this is purely about making games your job. If you just want to make games and you have stable income outside of that, fuck yeah, let's go.

Unions don’t necessarily protect you from layoffs. BUT they do give you leverage when one does happen. I’ve heard from unionized folks how it helped them secure better severance, benefit extensions etc. The last few years have shown there is no reason not to unionize!

Our games industry is people. Our studios are people. Our teams people, our games by people for people. Our games are made by people, in groups of people, in teams of people, making people things for people. The magic is people, and the people deserve so much better than all this. I am so sorry.

Today is a momentous day for the workers of Arena! After months of planning, waiting and organizing, our dream is finally a reality; the votes have been counted, and our union of UWOTC-CWA has been officially elected. From this day forward, we have a union!

wrote something

Today's Israel: Israel brutally murders Lebanese marine ecologist that protected a precious turtle nesting area by literally bombing her house. They long stopped making up clearly bullshit excuses about Hamas or Hezbollah, they just execute people now. www.theguardian.com/world/2026/j...

I will say this much: there is zero shame in leaving the game industry. Be it because you're not finding your next role, or because you're tired of it and need a break. The industry doesn't deserve the people who work in it, and you owe it nothing.

A video game studio should be allowed to make a bad game and gain some institutional knowledge without being gutted, skinned, and melted it down into glue every fiscal year.

Seriously though I know (because I am experiencing it right now!!!) these layoffs are fucking brutal whether you’re being laid off, surviving the layoff, or just reminded of your own. The suicide hotline in the US is 988, you don’t have to be actively planning an attempt to call.

(Not so fun fact) living in constant fear of losing your livelihood, does not, in fact, result in great or meaningful art.

And what's hilarious is that Game Companies ™️ are still requiring folks to move to work at their studio. Lol absolutely not. No no no. Don't do it. Not worth it.

I just do want to say, please look at situations like this and realize your lay off has no reflection on how good you are at your job whatsoever. There is nothing you can do or could have done to ensure this doesn't happen to you except for work to change the industry.

I'm angry for so many of my industry peers, but before I log off: a reminder that if you ever need a portfolio review, a second set of eyes on a resume or cover letter, or I can put in a good word for you anywhere, please let me know. I know it's not much, but we have to look out for each other.

BREAKING: Ubisoft is shutting down its studios in Winnipeg and Belgrade and making further cuts across its global publishing business. Ubisoft Barcelona is also facing restructuring. Layoffs are currently pending consultation and could impact up to 380 employees.

I always thought that "listen, it doesn't matter how famous you are, you got literally be Scorsese - AI will tank your reputation and your career" would remain a hypothetical but here we are

Last two days to help fund the development of Dreams on a Pillow! Unlike Kickstarter, developers receive all contributions even if the goal isn’t reached, and LaunchGood takes 0% in commissions. www.launchgood.com/v4/campaign/... Please RT and most importantly support the project if you can 🙏

They never want us talking about the low rates or how difficult shoots are. You raise your voice and you risk not being invited back to set. Very happy to see the crew of Obsession slowly talking about their experience

I've given talks about how posting is a form of digital networking, and while it's okay to be a little silly and rowdy, it's important to also remember you are "on" when you're online. We work in entertainment, but we're professionals. And ultimately that's what gets you work.

Repeating the advice here that I gave this guy on LinkedIn: regardless of the innate sexism of this post (which is a whole other thing), ESPECIALLY if you are a freelancer, know what Hot Takes are best served for a group chat of trusted friends/peers instead of... in front of the whole industry.

A company that makes a no-tech, repairable tractor is having trouble keeping up with demand from farmers sick of John Deere's repair monopoly and simply want a tractor that turns on and works: www.404media.co/demand-is-bo...

As a certified tumblrina I must remind y’all that a social media website tagging things as NSFW is a slippery slope to tagging anything they don’t like. Tumblr famously made ALL queer content NSFW. They made the tag #girl NSFW!! Censorship sucks!!!!

anyways, if you've ever wondered "why are games expensive" it's because sometimes you meet people in AAA who don't know what they want to make and they waste all their time on indecisiveness bad management, particularly in the c-suite and exec levels, is the largest cost issue in games

This is true! It’s because they don’t have to pay us as much or offer healthcare or benefits if we’re contractors. I know I’ve said it a million times, but these companies couldn’t be doing more to encourage us to unionize if they TRIED.

Today, the IGNCG sent this letter to our President of Ziff Davis Gaming & Entertainment to demand pay that reflects the rate of inflation in our contract. Please join us in asking @errorjustin.bsky.social, @peer-ign.bsky.social, @corradimus.bsky.social, and @yprough.bsky.social to pay us fairly.

I got a LOT of flack on the other site back in the day for saying that worldbuilding is not inherently story. There's something to be said for "just enough" worldbuilding: just enough to build a compelling scaffolding for your plot and characters. If you go too hard, it turns into handcuffs!

Another HUGE announcement for Global Accessibilty Awarness Day. I am a part of the brand new PlayStation Studios Accessibility Community Council! I, along with 15 other accessibility folks, will help PlayStation Studios make more accessible games!

We value devs who are tools too much and devs who make tools too little.

Don’t trust someone who doesn’t have VLC on their laptop.

(The trick is the same as with players, find their motivation and then use it to lead them where you want them to go.) Every time I've been put in a lead position, we've been on time and over delivered. Because I understand how the PEOPLE I'm working with are motivated.

The left does not need to go back to Twitter The left does not need its own Joe Rogan The left does not need their own 9-5 equivalent to Monitoring The Situation that streams to a dying mall The left does not need to go to the bowling alley You will never roll another 300, I'm sorry, give it up.

If we actually want to appreciate moms, we should be providing free childcare, healthcare, and guaranteed income for stay-at-home parents to put more money in families’ pockets and ensure no SAHP is reliant on a partner for their economic security. Idk I think that’s better than 15% off a vacuum.

no joke I think this is like the number 2 most beneficial thing an indie developer can do (after learning how to make a game lol) because I don’t think this is a universal thought process and becoming a more well rounded person is free

I think this is true for all creatives but I especially try to give this advice to folks who want to go into games media, because we're already swamped with folks whose literal only interest in life is video games and all their writing sounds the same.

You can also donate to our operations if you can’t stop by at kapow.works/donate! We make sure to serve everyone who comes in while also hosting free, fun events all week. Tomorrow we’re hosting a book swap and craft day! Hope to see you there :)

SCOOP: double fine is unionizing

Indie game devs - you need a producer. If you want your game to put coordinated and for the people in your team to be communicating well, that's a producer's job to facilitate! #gamedev #indiedev

Signed! 💪 And it took less than 60 seconds! If you support game developers organizing for a better conditions and a brighter future for our medium, you should sign too!